Quantum
by circxe
Summary: [Modern AU] Newt looks at the world through atoms and particles that float around in space, never truly touching one another in an intangible web of quantum mechanics. Thomas makes him want to put those particles together.
1. I: Fancy

Minho braced himself as he exited the cafe into the frigid winter air. He shrugged his shoulders and patted around his pockets for his cigarettes, then once more for his lighter. It was early February and winter continued to bite relentlessly around them, like a grumpy old man that refused to leave a family dinner. He took a drag from his lit cigarette and blew the smoke out high above him, watching it fade away into the atmosphere.

His watch told him that it was already four in the afternoon, and he was relieved to find that the sun was still in the sky. That was good, it meant spring was close by. Readjusting the strap of his bag around his shoulder, he started forwards in the direction of the library when he heard someone call out behind him.

He didn't recognise the soft, feminine voice. Curious, he turned around to find an unfamiliar girl standing in front of him. She was pretty; long ombré hair and big brown eyes with a small heart shaped face. Her coat was a blue Burberry and she looked like one of those girls who believed they ought to be on the runway instead of walking around on the streets like every other peasant.

"Do I know you?" he asked her.

"Well... no," she answered slowly, clasping her hands behind her back. "I just- um... wanted to talk to you."

"Okay, sure..." he stared at her expectantly and saw a blush starting to creep onto her cheeks. It made her tanned skin glow.

"It's just that I see you all the time here," she cocked her head in the direction of the cafe. "And um..."

He crossed his arms and smiled, a growing suspicion that he knew what she was about to say. Minho had to admit, it was refreshing to have a girl come up to him instead of the other way around. He'd always admired girls who did that, it showed that they had guts- to go for it and do the things they wanted to do.

"Wow, okay," she breathed out and laughed nervously. "I've had a crush on you since first year and my friend made me tell you or else he'll never give me back my limited edition DVDs."

The expression on her face when she finished made him laugh out loud, and her eyebrows raised up in surprise.

"Well, you can tell your friend that he's a cruel, heartless person," he said.

"I did," she replied. "Twice."

"What's your name?" he asked her.

"Kera," she tucked her hair behind her ear. "Yours?"

"Minho."

"Okay, since I know your name now," she opened her bag and pulled out a small box. "I can give you these."

He laughed. "What's that?"

"Chocolates... for Valentine's," she winced. "I know it's cheesy but-"

"Your friend made you?" he raised an eyebrow and she nodded sheepishly. "It's cool, I accept. _But_..."

She started to hand the box of chocolates to him when he raised a finger up in the air and she paused. The smirk on his face grew wider, his dimple showing on the side of his cheek, and the girl felt her heart stop as she looked up at him with anxious eyes.

"On condition that you go on a date with me," he finished.

Kera let out a weak laugh and he could see her hand tremble slightly. "Are you serious?" she asked.

"Yeah," he nodded. "So? How about it? Tonight."

The girl continued to stare at him as if he was mad, then she nodded her head quickly and he finally took the chocolates from her. They hastily exchanged numbers before she fled from the scene, ducking back into the warmth of the cafe.

Minho smiled as he watched her return to her table inside and started talking animatedly to someone else sat in the corner, obstructed from view by a jutting wall. Must be that sly friend of hers, he thought. He started to walk away, but not before catching her eye and winking back. She collapsed into her seat, clutching her heart, and he couldn't help but laugh to himself.

* * *

"And that was how I got myself a date."

He ate another piece of chocolate and looked back at the blonde boy in front of him. Newt's sandwich hovered on the way to his open mouth as he stared at his friend with horrified round eyes. His hand fell back down to the table and the other went up to smack himself in the face.

"You did what?!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"What?" Minho shrugged. "She was really cute."

"Uhuh," Newt looked at him in mild resignation. "Just don't scare the poor thing."

"Wonder who her friend is though," Minho looked up thoughtfully. "I need to thank him."

"Slow down there," the blonde shook his head. "You haven't even gone on that date yet. What if she turns out to be a serial killer?"

"Nah, man," he stood up from their bench and slung his bag over his shoulder. The boy turned to his friend with a smitten look on his face. "She's _really_ cute."

With a contentedly smug smile on his face, he headed back early to get ready for the evening. Newt returned to his sandwich and crossed out a word on his assignment. He turned the page of his textbook and paused, blinking in mute shock.

There was a letter tucked away on the first chapter of quantum mechanics and molecular properties. Only two words were written on its front, in beautiful penmanship that looked like it belonged to a sixteenth century poet.

 ** _To Newt._**

* * *

Author's Note:

Just think of Kera as Minho's mysterious counterpart from Group B xD


	2. II: Acquaintance

Newt blew on the surface of his coffee as he made his way towards the library, squinting against a sudden gust of wind. His tongue burned on the scalding hot liquid and he sighed as his shoes crunched against the multicolour of dried leaves that littered the ground.

When he arrived at his usual bench underneath the maple tree with a dedication to Chancellor Ava Paige at its base, he stopped three feet away and gawked. It was his study tree that he shared with Minho every single day since they started in Denver University and became friends. He found that bench behind the Janson Library, it was isolated and empty because the only way to get there was by going through the maze or jumping down from the stairs that led to the first floor.

The dark hair boy looked up from his notebook and smiled.

Newt whirled around and sat on the opposite bench with his back turned against the intruder. He opened up his textbook with a small frown and took out his notes as he usually did. Steam continued to rise from his cup of coffee, swirling in the frosty air that nipped at his exposed skin, then disappearing like smoke- the smell of Minho's coats.

Half an hour later, he caught a whiff of his friend's scent as he approached with the girl he had gone out with the night before. They stopped in front of his bench and asked the same question in unison.

"What are you doing?"

But the girl- who, Newt had to admit, was cute- wasn't looking at him. She was staring at the bench behind, to the boy that had taken their spot. He twisted around and saw him waving in her direction sheepishly and Newt turned back to Minho, hoping for an explanation.

"I asked her if she wanted to do her work with us," he rubbed the back of his head. "And I said it was okay if her friend came along too, you know, the one I needed to thank." He laughed weakly. "I thought you'd be okay with it, man."

"Oh," Newt glanced back at the boy again and stood up, gathering his things in understanding. "No, it's completely fine! Just gimme a little warning next time."

"Oh, yeah, sorry," Minho said as he led the way back to their table. "Thought I'd get here before you did. Don't you have labs today?"

"It got cancelled," he replied then addressed the boy who was watching them quietly. "Sorry about that, didn't know you were supposed to be with us."

"It's fine, I probably would have done the same," he gave another friendly smile. "I'm Thomas."

"Newt," he nodded back.

"Thomas, huh?" Minho looked at him with a smirk. "Man, I need to thank you."

"Stop it," Kera nudged him but he merely grinned back.

"Like seriously, dude," he went on. "Anything you need, just come to me."

They exchanged a significant look with each other then Thomas cleared his throat. "So uh... what did you guys do?"

"Just had dinner and a walk," she told him casually. Thomas knew she was hiding something instantly, and raised an eyebrow at her.

Newt highlighted a sentence on his notes and looked up. "With Minho? I ain't buyin' it."

Minho opened his mouth to reply but she pinched him in the side and he cried out in pain instead. "Nope, just that," she squeaked as he gave her a sullen look. "Totally just that. Nothin' happened."

"Suuuure..." Newt shared an amused glance with Thomas. They were both so obvious, it was blinding. "And I'm the bloody Queen of England."

"Oh, for God's sake," Minho rolled his eyes and pulled out his cigarettes. "We had ice cream too, okay?"

Thomas snorted beside Newt as the blonde bit his lip and stared at his friend in growing disbelief. Even after three years, the boy never failed to surprise him. Kera nodded her head eagerly, eyes darting back and forth between them all. She hadn't caught the insinuation just yet but when she did, she smacked Minho's arm with a loud slap.

"Hey! You're just making it sound worse!" she exclaimed, her previous meekness dissipating into the air.

Sparing the girl any more embarrassment, they dropped the subject and started to focus on their respective work. It turned out that Kera was doing Fine Arts, and Thomas was studying Contemporary Literature. It was a striking contrast to Newt's Physics course and Minho's Engineering. The Art students versus the Science students; it made for numerous eclectic conversations as they stole Minho's cigarettes and took down only a few sentences worth of notes during the entire two hours they sat there.

Just as Newt reached for another cigarette, he brushed against Thomas' fingers that were doing the same. He pulled his hand back and looked directly into the boy's dark brown eyes, noticing the spatter of moles on the side of his face. An urge to touch the boy took him by surprise and he drew back, gesturing for Thomas to go first.

"Thanks," he murmured as he took a stick from the pack and lit it up. A puff of smoke billowed around him a second later, creating a hazy layer that surrounded him with an esoteric quality.

Newt felt his heart skip a beat and he turned back to his notes, before remembering that he'd wanted a cigarette as well. He took one so it wouldn't appear weird and placed it between his lips. His eyes wandered back to the boy beside him as he lit the stick, and they took a drag at the same time. The rush of carbon monoxide leaving his tired lungs was in sync with the surge of adrenaline coursing through his veins.

Thomas looked up then, something deep and indiscernible in his abstruse gaze.

He wanted to unravel him, discover the hidden secrets of his cosmos and the way his atoms vibrated around their spin axes. His eyes continued to stare, enthralled by the perfect symmetry of his face and lines.

"Oh, no," Kera suddenly said when she looked at the time on her phone. "I got to go. Teresa said she was coming over around seven. Hey, Thomas, you going with me?"

"Huh?" he looked up at her as if rousing from a dream, then stubbed out his cigarette. "Oh, yeah, I'm coming."

He started to gather his things and stuffed it back into his bag as Kera made more arrangements with Minho for the next day. They bade each other goodbye and the Art students walked away towards the nearby bus stop. Newt watched them leave, taking note of the boy's broad shoulders tapering down to his narrow hips. Then Minho turned to him immediately with a grin that sent his eyes creasing at the sides.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"Hm? Yeah, she is pretty cute," Newt replied. "You bloody lucked out this time."

"No, shank," Minho frowned. "I'm talking about Thomas."

"What?" the blonde looked at his friend in shock. "W-What?"

"You should go for it, man."

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?" Newt picked up his notes and rearranged them into order. His heart started to accelerate nervously at the thoughts Minho was putting into his head.

"Please, dude, I saw you checking him out," Minho crossed his arms with a smirk.

"It was nothing," he shook his head adamantly. "He just had ink on his face."

"Sure, and I'm the King of France," his friend snorted then started to pack his things up as well.

Newt paused when he picked up his textbook. He pulled out another envelope from the middle of the book, and stared at it with furrowed eyebrows. Minho noticed and asked what it was. He turned the envelope over and once again, the beautiful calligraphy stood out starkly against the white paper.

"It's another love letter."


	3. III: Notes

His pen glided smoothly over the crisp white paper as the words flowed from somewhere deep inside him, like a gushing stream that sought escape into the wild open seas. Dark eyes haunted his dreams, hair the colour of sunlight that filtered through the canopies, blinding him with an exquisite warmth. He wondered what his lips tasted of, bitter like the black coffees he took in the early mornings or minty like the Eclipse tins he brought around with him everywhere.

Kera and Teresa were chattering away in the living room, their squeals of laughter penetrating through the thin wooden door of the two bedroom apartment. He'd known the latter girl since he was a child, but Kera offered her what he couldn't and that was a gossip partner. Thomas could hear them talking in hushed tones but he knew they were dissecting every instance of Kera's impromptu night out yesterday. The girl had finally confessed on the bus ride home that they'd kiss on the first date and she was now wholly convinced that Minho was the one for her.

But all he could think about was the boy's blonde companion.

Those dark eyes that teemed with the knowledge of galaxies that were millions of light years away, burning with the intensity of a thousand suns in analytical desire.

Thomas sighed as he put his pen down and looked at his finished work.

" _Between the barren sun scorched land,_  
 _In some distant world beyond that_  
 _Our minds could barely comprehend, yet_  
 _I dare not say its name out of fear, perchance_  
 _You will not understand._

 _If reincarnation was a thing of_  
 _Observable quantitative measure,_  
 _I think of all the lifetimes I may have forgotten_  
 _Was a prelude to this single qualitative moment,_  
 _When I realised my heart's desire."_

He stopped reading when there was a knock on the door and Teresa peeked her head through the gap, her blue eyes searching the room until it fell on him.

"Hey," she beamed widely. "Pizza's here!"

"Okay, thanks," he returned and she went back to the living room.

" _Time, is neither an event nor a thing_  
 _But a measurement of electronic frequencies_  
 _Of atoms that vibrate between spin energy levels_  
 _And keeps us from losing ourselves_  
 _To the inevitable chaos of our disintegrating particles._

 _But you already knew that."_

* * *

"You have a secret admirer."

Newt looked up from his dinner to Minho leaning back against the wall. He rolled his eyes while swallowing and then took a big gulp of water. The boy grinned at him from across the table.

"Thanks, Minho, I had absolutely no idea," he replied sarcastically.

"You're welcome," Minho picked up his bowl of soup and took a loud slurp.

He sighed and looked back down to the letter that was lying on the table. It wasn't bad writing, not like the sappy nonsense that he received back in high school from girls that read too many romance novels or watched copious amounts of chick flicks. It was amusing to read the wry humour inserted into every last sentence and the logical stream of thought punctuated by more abstract theories.

"What do you think about it?"

Newt paused for a fraction of a second before shrugging his narrow shoulders. "Not much, to be honest. I just wanna know how he friggin' sneaks them into my books."

"Must be someone you know then?" Minho raised his eyebrows in thought. "Or goes to the same places that you do."

"The only places I go to are classes, the cafe and the study bench."

"Must be from the cafe, man," the boy pointed. "Like Kera found me in the cafe too. Hang on, how do you know it's a he?"

The blonde shrugged once more. "Just a hunch. I could be totally wrong."

"You sure it's not because you already have someone in mind you're hoping it to be?" Minho smiled slyly.

"Slim it, man," Newt waved his hand in the air as if swatting the boy's words away like gnats. "C'mon, let's play some League."

"Hey! That reminds me," Minho immediately stood up and started ranting about the latest patches for the online game. They got their laptops out and played in the kitchen like they usually did. Immediately when he went online, he received a new friend request.

"Who's BoomHeadshot?" he raised an eyebrow, wondering out loud to himself.

"Oh, hey, that's Kera!" Minho exclaimed excitedly. "And she's online too, let's play a game with her!"

"Wow, the two of you are meant to be together, honestly," Newt said drily. "Okay, now who's ILovePonies and PrincessStabbity?"

"Uh... hang on..." the other boy mumbled distractedly as he smashed away at his keyboard. "Thomas and Teresa."

"Wait a bloody minute," the blonde said as he sat up straighter in his chair and leaned in to take a closer look at his screen. He clicked on the username and scrolled through the profile before looking at Minho with wide eyes filled with awe. "Thomas is that guy I was tellin' you about."

"What guy?" he glanced up. "Oh, snap. You mean the four pentakill in a row guy?"

Newt nodded his head slowly and Minho grinned evilly. "We're gonna slay it tonight, dude."

They played ten games, until way past midnight, and just as Minho had said; their team slayed every single one. Then the girls called it a night and headed to bed. Minho quickly excused himself, darting into his bedroom and Newt could hear him talking on the phone a couple of minutes later. He was about to log off himself when he saw a private message pop up on the screen.

[ILovePonies]: Hey, you were really great.

[BloodyInspired]: Thanks, you too, Penta Master. I gotta learn them moves.

[ILovePonies]: Haha. That's not all you can learn ;D

Newt leaned back against his chair and stared at his laptop, feeling his heart skip another beat. His imagination started running wild and he felt like a hormone addled teenager again, picking words apart for hidden implications.

[BloodyInspired]: I look forward to it :) Good night, Tommy.

[ILovePonies]: Night, Newt.

He slammed his laptop shut and left it on the kitchen table to fill a glass of water, downing it in one big gulp before going into his room.

As he was lying in bed, prepared to go to sleep, his thoughts were filled with soft lips painted with stardust and dark eyes that drowned him in luxuriant fascination.


	4. IV: Coffee

"They think that dark matter exists in the form of sterile neutrinos, and that supernovaes shoot them out in tight streams along their magnetic field lines, and that the blasts kick out the pulsars through the cosmos at thousands of kilometers per second."

So it turned out that Teresa was in the same course as him and she followed Newt out of their astrophysics class to the cafe. She also loved talking about quantum physics as much as he did, and they instantly became fast friends. They were standing in line from the counter and had just stepped up to order their drinks when a familiar face beamed at them over the cash register.

"Teresa, your geek is showing," Thomas said.

"Tommy," Newt looked at him in surprise. "I didn't know you worked here."

"I don't actually, I'm just helping to cover for Brenda," he rubbed the back of his head. "She has an assignment due in this afternoon and she's rushing to finish it."

"Oh, tell her I said hi," Teresa said before ordering a caramel frappuccino.

"And I'll have-"

"A double espresso?" Thomas finished for him.

"Yeah..." Newt gave him a funny look. "How'd you know?"

"Oh, I saw you had it yesterday too and made a guess," the boy explained as he punched in the order. "Kera said she's gonna join you guys again later. Do you always study there everyday?"

"Yeah, without fail," Newt shrugged. "It's kinda our spot."

They stepped away when someone else came to order a drink and Teresa went to use the ladies room. Newt took a sip of his coffee as he waited and Thomas turned to him.

"How long have you known Minho for?" he asked.

"Since we started uni, we share a couple of modules together," Newt replied. "He's a decent guy, you don't have to worry."

"I'm not worried about that," Thomas laughed. "Kera can handle herself. They seem really into each other though."

"Yeah, I've never seen him act this way before," Newt grunted. "She's a nice girl, doesn't seem like a psychopath at all."

"Oh, you have not seen her when she's mad," the boy paused. "So you don't have a girlfriend?"

The blonde shrugged. "Not interested in girls."

"Oh."

He licked his lips as they continued to regard each other in a sudden quiescence. The sun peeking through the glass wall behind him shone on the opposite boy, making his eyes lighten and sparkle with a hint of curiosity. He could feel his heart thump against his throat and he took another sip to swallow it down.

"You're not attached to anyone then?" he asked as well.

Thomas shook his head and opened his mouth to reply when Teresa came back, chattering away about something or other. Newt barely listened as he continued to gaze at Thomas over his drink and he felt a tingling sensation throughout his entire body. They left the cafe and the dark haired boy, heading off for their next class.

* * *

Newt offered Teresa to join them at their study spot and she readily accepted. They met Minho and Kera on the way to the library, holding hands and laughing giddily with each other already despite it only being a week since they met.

The group made their way to the benches behind the building, jumping down from the stairs and crossing the empty green field. He'd been so used to his own solitary company here, with Minho coming by only after he finished all his classes, that it felt strange to have that many of them gathered there. But their lively conversations quickly put the thought out of his mind and he laughed along with them.

Books and stationaries were taken out of their bags and arranged around the table as they made an effort to get some work done. Newt opened his text of paradoxes on modern physics when another letter dropped out. Teresa picked it up and turned it over, frowning at the two words on its front.

"What's this?" she asked, blue eyes filled with curiosity as she handed it back to him.

"A love letter from his secret admirer," Minho answered for him. "Dude, how does he do it?"

"I have no idea," Newt muttered as he opened the envelope and read its contents.

Teresa hovered over his right shoulder as she peeked at it nosily and started to frown again. He glanced at her, noticing the confused expression on her face.

"What's with that look?" he asked.

"Nothing... it's just... the handwriting looks familiar," she turned towards Kera who was snacking on a cookie. "Have you seen this?"

"Hm? Yeah, he gets one everyday," the girl replied nonchalantly. "I think they're pretty neat."

"But... did you look at the handwriting? I swear it's..."

Kera kicked her from under the table and she jumped in surprise. "Nope, don't know what you're talking about," she said airily while giving her a pointed look.

Newt hadn't noticed the exchange as a smile slowly crept onto his face, eyes scanning the page from left to right. Minho nudged Kera and smirked as he threw a glance at his blonde friend.

"Enjoying yourself there?" he asked loudly across the table.

Newt cleared his throat and tucked the letter into his bag, then flipped a page on his book. "Yeah, sure," he tried to shrug it off but his heart felt elated. Whoever this secret admirer was, he knew exactly what to write to pique his interest.

"Where's Thomas?" Minho asked, looking around as if the boy were hiding under the table or behind the tree.

"Said he had to cover for Brenda in the cafe," Teresa told him. "He probably won't be able to join us. The shift usually ends around seven."

"Aw, that sucks."

They went back to their usual study routine and entertaining conversations. Kera had brought along her portfolio and showed them her project. She had chosen to do surrealism in space and he adored the chaotic swirling splatters of constellations across the canvas paper. It made him think of Thomas.

When it started to get dark, they packed up their things to head back home. Newt hesitated as he neatly put away his notes and Minho turned to him. "You coming, dude?"

"Hold on, I just remembered I needed to pop by the shop," he said.

"Okay, we'll wait on you," the Engineer student glanced at his watch. "Bus arrives in twenty, better make it quick."

"Sure thing," he replied and quickly walked away in the opposite direction.

He clambered up the low wall of the stairs and jogged towards the cafe. Mercifully, it was almost empty and he spotted the pale boy with his dark eyes instantly. Newt went up and smiled brightly, picking up a tin of mints to place on the countertop.

"Hey," Thomas greeted him. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Yeah," the blonde chuckled almost nervously.

"The usual?" he asked.

"Actually," Newt paused. "Surprise me. I wanna try something new."

"Sure," he beamed widely.

"Don't make it too sweet though."

Thomas turned around and started whipping something up at the back of the counter. Newt spied him sprinkling salt on the top of the foam when he was done. He handed the drink to him without charging it to the register and crossed his arms expectantly.

Newt took a sip, and was surprised at how much he liked it.

"That's good," he commented. "What is it?"

"It's my own recipe," the other boy grinned. "Glad you like it."

"When does the shift end?" Newt asked and Thomas glanced at the clock.

"Now, actually," he pulled the string of his apron behind his back and took it off.

"Great, we can catch the bus together. The others are waiting."

They exited the cafe, turning the collar of their coats up at the draft of cold air. He felt a rush of exhilaration as they walked down the path in the direction of the library, chatting about nothing and everything at the same time. He wanted to know more about the human being beside him, learn the intricate details of his thoughts. There was a sudden drop in his heart when the bus stop came into view and he wished that he could just fabricate more time.


	5. V: Epidemic

It had started out like any other normal day, until the news came along on the airwaves and plastered on every available wall around the city. A new airborne virus was ravaging the streets of Denver and suddenly everyone was going around with masks on and avoiding everyone else on sight. It had been a week since then and seven people had already succumbed.

They called it The Flare- because that was what it did to the body's central nervous system, provoking an autoimmune response that attacked at the very thing that kept it alive.

Newt walked into the kitchen just as Minho went into a loud coughing fit that sent him doubling over at the table. He glanced towards his friend in concern.

"You alright there, Minho?"

"Yeah, it's nothin'," the boy replied, straightening up again. "Just been smoking too much. This latest assignment is a killer. I haven't even got the time to see Kera, dude."

"You really need to quit that addiction of yours, mate," Newt shook his head. "And how is she? I haven't seen her for a while either."

"She's okay, got a reading week and been holed up at home since," Minho told him.

He thought that it was odd to have a reading week so early in the term but the Art Faculty had always been pretty weird. Heading over to the counter, he switched the kettle on to boil and made some coffee to go. Ever since the spread of the virus, the university had closed down the cafes, bars and restaurants around the campus to minimize the risk of infection. It was a chore for him since he was now running on less caffeine than he was used to. Sometimes he'd manage to make himself another cup from the pantry in the Science building but mostly, he didn't have the time to drop in.

Exam season was only three months away and their workload seemed to have tripled over the last week. He was now eating, breathing and sleeping quantum theories and calculations every second of the day. And by the sign of Minho's dark circles, they were pretty much in the same boat.

He called out a cheery goodbye as he walked out of the apartment and down the elevator to the convenient bus stop across the street. Teresa was sat at the back of the packed morning bus and she waved him over, moving her bag from the seat next to her. He'd always gotten mad when somebody else he didn't know did that but he was glad Teresa was one of those people for his sake.

The bus ride only took fifteen minutes to reach the top of the hill where the university was perched on, overlooking the city from the north. It was a breathtaking sight when the weather was being cooperative.

"I'm kinda worried about Thomas," Teresa told him and he turned to her with his own concern etched on his face.

"What's wrong with him?" he asked anxiously.

"I don't know, I think he's in a slump," she looked at him. "Writer's block, maybe?"

"Oh..." he relaxed somewhat. "I guess everyone's a bit on edge at the moment."

"No kidding," she frowned. "I mean, I get it. But seriously, it's so annoying."

They got off at their stop and made their way towards their class. He caught a glimpse of the cafe and clutched the strap of his bag. Ever since it was closed, he stopped receiving his anonymous letters as well, which just proved that Minho had been right all along; someone from the cafe had been sneaking them into his books. There were always a lot of people in the cafe and he couldn't possibly begin to guess who it was.

There was a commotion outside the entrance of the Science building and they craned their heads, trying to get a view of what it could be. Teresa spotted one of the boys from their course and went up to ask him what was happening.

"They're closing the university," he told them. "One of the students caught the virus."

Teresa's eyes widened in sympathy. "Oh, no. I wonder who it was, I hope it's not someone we know."

Superstition dictated that if you said something out loud, you inevitably doomed it to happen and just as Teresa finished her sentence, Newt received a call from Minho.

"This is bad, this is so bad, Newt, I don't know what to do," his friend's frenzied voice greeted him over the line.

"Calm down, what happened?" he asked but felt a sinking pit in his stomach from the apprehension.

"It's Kera, man, she caught it," Minho said in a strangled voice. "I got a call from Brenda and they're rushing her to the hospital right now. Man, oh, man, dude."

He groaned in dismay and Newt glanced to Teresa who was watching him with a pale expression, just knowing that she was going to swallow her previous words soon.

"Okay, it'll be fine, maybe they found it early," Newt told him in an effort to be comforting but he could barely believe his own words. "You should go to the hospital."

"You think?" Minho interjected. "Yeah, maybe you're right, yeah. Would they let me?"

"Just breathe, man," Newt told him. "Yeah, I think they'll allow one visitor to stay with her. The uni's closed down cause of her, I think."

"Oh, God!" Teresa gasped next to him, clasping a hand to her mouth. "Kera?!"

"Okay. Okay, yeah, thanks, man," Minho said, sounding more like himself, and disconnected.

Newt sighed and looked at Teresa as she grabbed hold of his shoulders. She told him that they had to let Thomas know what happened but they couldn't get through to his phone. They spent the next hour scouring the campus for him but there was still no sign. Eventually, Teresa said she'll go back to the apartment to check and he stayed back in case the boy showed up.

Half an hour later, he got a text from her- Thomas wasn't back at the apartment and he left his phone at home. She was going to get some food for Minho and check on Kera too, then told him to look for Thomas up on the hill. The stars were out and it was a clear night, excellent conditions for gazing.

So Newt readjusted his bag over his shoulders and made the upward climb to the top of the hill.


	6. VI: Illusions

Newt found Thomas perched on the edge of the world against a backdrop of luminosity and constellations. He was beautiful, like a lone planet wandering the heavens without an orbit, pulling other interstellar objects in with its gravitational attraction.

He looked up then and smiled brightly, causing a nuclear reaction at his very core. "Hey. Fancy seeing you here," he said.

"We've been looking for you everywhere," Newt told him and he blinked in surprise.

"What? Why? Did something happen?" Thomas' eyes widened with concern.

"Yeah... it's Kera. She caught the Flare."

His reaction was instantaneous as he shot up from the ground. "What! That... that was her? Oh, God. Is she going to be okay? Do you know?"

"Not yet... Minho and Teresa are at the hospital right now," he told him.

Thomas' face fell and he looked down as if he were going to be sick. "I should have known something was up. She told me she was just having a stomach bug."

"Hey, it's not your fault, alright?" Newt went up to him and squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

The boy sighed despondently. "She's my best friend in uni... I- I have so much to thank her for."

"How so?" he asked out of curiosity.

"I didn't think I'd be able to make it through first year but she was there to support me through it," Thomas explained. "And it was also the reason..."

He mumbled the last part out but Newt had heard it. "Also the reason for what?"

A silence filled the air between them, somewhere in the universe the core of a star was collapsing and it would explode in catastrophic destruction. Thomas hesitated, then his dark eyes flicked up to him with a sudden burning resolution. "The reason I started writing to you."

"Writing to-" the realisation clicked into place like the trigger of a gun. "It was you? The letters from the cafe..."

"We had a deal... if I sent you a letter, she'll tell Minho how she felt," he drew away and Newt felt the loss of his warmth. "She's a lot braver than I am."

"It was you..." he whispered, a mixture of emotions cascading over him like a wave, and his heart raced. "It's always been you."

"Yes, it was me," Thomas confirmed. "It was a stupid idea. You probably think they're horrible, _I_ think they're horrible. I never should have done it, I should have stopped. Just getting to know you should have been enough but no, of course I wanted more. Of course, I-"

"I like them."

He blinked dumbly. Newt looked to him, felt his throat constrict and heart quiver in his chest. The cold bit at them but the rush of blood to his head made him hot around the collar. He wanted to touch him again, to give in to the magnetic pull that drew him to the boy.

"I like them," he repeated. "And I like you."

Thomas swallowed, his throat bobbing up and down. "I..."

Newt took a step forward and there was uncertainty in those dark brown eyes that frequented his every waking and sleeping thought. He reached out, took Thomas' face in his hands and crushed his lips against his. He was honey and mint, a shooting star streaking across the sky in a burst of ephemeral radiance. Their breaths mingled, escaping like mist into the restless night.

Thomas took his hand in his as they gazed out at the twinkling starlight above the luster of city lights beneath it. A calm settled over them, a beautiful ethereal feeling that only came with the presence of happiness.

"You know our bodies are made of electrons that can never touch," he said. "They hover at point hundred million meters above each other."

"But we're touching right now," Thomas chuckled.

"It's just an illusion of the human brain to interpret the interaction of our electrons and the electromagnetic field," he told him.

"Well, it's the grandest illusion I've ever known."

"And the best."

* * *

Author's Note:

I've been thinking of doing a modern Newtmas for days and just came up for this short story for a contest. I might continue it if people like it though!

Also, am I the only one that can't see Minho with anyone else except Newt, Thomas or an OC? xD

P.S: Don't smoke! It's bad!


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